MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Liam Payne plunges three stories to his death in Buenos Aires

In 2019, he was named the first global brand ambassador for German brand Hugo Boss

British pop musician Liam Payne of One Direction fame died Wednesday in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in circumstances still under investigation. He was found dead in his hotel room after plunging three stories. The location looked ransacked and filled with traces of heavy drugs. First responders said he had a severe blow to his head as a result of the fall.

Payne, 31, was in the Argentine capital as a tourist, although he also made a guest appearance at his former bandmate Niall Horan's Oct. 2 show. He was staying at a Deluxe Suite in the lesser-known celebrity-oriented Casa Sur hotel in the Palermo district.

Authorities found the body after a call to the Police reporting the presence of “an aggressive man who could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol”.

“Liam James Payne, composer and guitarist, former member of the band One Direction, died today when he fell from the third floor of a hotel in Palermo,” the Buenos Aires Police said in a statement.

The musician had “very serious injuries incompatible with life as a result of his fall, so we had to confirm death [because] there was no possibility of resuscitation,” Buenos Aires Medical Emergency System (SAME) Alberto Crescenti told reporters. The 911 call was received at 5.04 pm and 7 minutes later the SAME team was there, Crescenti added. “Later we found out he was a singer in a musical group,” he also explained.

Born on Aug. 29, 1993, Liam James Payne in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England, Payne leaves behind one child born in 2017 from his relationship with Cheryl Cole as well as his musical success, particularly with One Direction, until the band stopped performing together in 2015. After that, he began a solo career. In the first three years of his new phase, he sold over 18 million singles and 2.4 million albums and amassed 3.9 billion streams.

In his early life, Payne was detected to have a kidney condition for which he took numerous injections daily. He also pursued a career in athletics and took up boxing lessons amidst bullying from older students in high school.

In 2019, he was named the first global brand ambassador for German brand Hugo Boss.

Known for his pro-choice stance, he also expressed his support for the Black Lives Matter movement and attended protests to that end in London.

Payne's net worth was estimated at £47 million in 2020. He was a supporter of the football team West Bromwich Albion.

As an adult, he was diagnosed with ADHD. In August 2023, he was hospitalized with a kidney infection. He had also discussed publicly his struggles with alcoholism and suicidal ideation.